Technologies

Madden NFL 26 Rushes to Xbox Game Pass in February

Play your own Big Game at home on your Xbox.

Super Bowl 2026 is over, and Xbox Game Pass subscribers can get started on a new season of football action with Madden NFL 26, which is now available on the service. Subscribers can see if the Seattle Seahawks will repeat as champions or if their favorite NFL team will make it to the Big Game in 2027.

Xbox Game Pass offers hundreds of games you can play on your Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, Amazon Fire TV, smart TV, PC or mobile device, with prices starting at $10 a month. While all Game Pass tiers offer you a library of games, Game Pass Ultimate ($30 a month) gives you access to the most games, as well as Day 1 games.

Here are all the latest games subscribers can play on Game Pass. You can also check out other games the company added to the service in February, including Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2.

Madden NFL 26

Available now for Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers.

Madden NFL 26 is at its best when it captures the feel of a real NFL Sunday, from the grind in the trenches to the split-second decisions that can swing a game. With the next season now seven months away from starting, it’s an easy way to scratch the football itch.

Paw Patrol Rescue Wheels: Championship

Available now for Game Pass Ultimate, Game Pass Premium and PC Game Pass subscribers.

Little racers and PAW Patrol fans will love jumping behind the wheel in this colorful, family-friendly monster-truck racer across Adventure Bay and beyond. Choose your favorite pup, then pull off stunts, turbo boosts and power-ups, then drift and race your way toward the championship in solo or multiplayer mode. With signature characters and playful chaos on every track, it’s a joyful ride that brings the Rescue Wheels crew to life

Relooted

Available on Feb. 10 for Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers.

Relooted is a clever Africanfuturist heist game where you assemble a ragtag crew to sneak into museums and reclaim real African artifacts through planning, parkour and fast-paced escapes. You’ll scout layouts, solve puzzles and race against alarms in a stylish blend of action and strategy. With its unique premise and cultural heart, it’s a fresh twist on the heist genre gamers should keep an eye on.

BlazBlue Entropy Effect X

Available on Feb. 12 for Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers.

BlazBlue is a franchise that made its bones on fast-paced fighting games, but BlazBlue Entropy Effect X is something entirely different. This new game is a stylish, fast-paced roguelite action adventure with striking 2D visuals and responsive combat that takes place in the BlazBlue universe. Players dive into the mysterious Sea of Possibility, battling waves of foes and unlocking new builds with combos and upgrades along the way.

Roadside Research

Available on Feb. 12 for Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers.

There are games with unique premises, and then there’s Roadside Research. In this game, players control aliens who have landed on Earth and are running a gas station. Their goal is to research humans and to avoid being detected by their human customers.

Starsand Island

Available on Feb. 12 for Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers.

Starsand Island is a cozy life-simulation game that blends farming, exploration and friendship building on a tranquil, anime-inspired island paradise. Players can grow crops, make lasting bonds with colorful villagers and uncover hidden secrets across lush landscapes at their own pace. It’s a relaxing escape into pastoral bliss that invites you to shape your ideal island life.

High on Life 2

Available on Feb. 13 for Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers.

High on Life 2 is the sequel to the 2022 FPS game made by Squanch Games, which was founded by the co-creator of the Rick and Morty series. The sequel has players once again traveling across the galaxy with an arsenal of talking guns as companions.

Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora

Available on Feb. 17 for Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers.

Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora drops you into the lush, alien world of Pandora where you explore a vast open frontier as a Na’vi warrior, mastering traditional weapons, human tech and aerial combat on your own banshee. The game blends first-person action, exploration and story-driven encounters as you unite clans to push back the RDA and protect your homeland. With immersive settings and dynamic gameplay, it’s a must-try for fans of cinematic adventures in rich, living worlds.

Games leaving Game Pass in February

For February, Microsoft is being a little more charitable by only removing one game this month. It’s also a game not many people will miss since it’s an older sports title, but for those still playing it, now is a good time to finish up what you can before it’s gone for good on Feb. 28.

Madden NFL 24

For more on Xbox, discover other games available on Game Pass now, and check out our hands-on review of the gaming service. You can also learn about recent changes to the Game Pass service.

Technologies

YouTubers Sue Amazon, Claim AI Tool Was Trained on Scraped Videos

The lawsuit alleges that Amazon bypassed YouTube protections to collect content for its generative AI video system.

A group of YouTube creators is suing Amazon, accusing the tech giant of secretly scraping their videos to train its AI video model without permission.

The proposed class action lawsuit, filed in federal court in Seattle, alleges Amazon used automated tools to download and extract data from millions of YouTube videos to build and improve its Nova Reel generative AI system — a model that can create short videos from text prompts and images.

At the center of the complaint is how that data was obtained. The plaintiffs claim that Amazon bypassed YouTube’s protections using virtual machines and rotating IP addresses to avoid detection, effectively sidestepping the platform’s safeguards against bulk downloading.

The lawsuit was brought by several creators, including Ted Entertainment (the company behind the H3 Podcast and h3h3 Productions), as well as individual YouTubers and channel operators. They argue that the alleged scraping violated copyright law and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, and are seeking damages as well as an injunction to stop the practice.

Amazon did not respond to a request for comment.

The case lands at a pivotal moment for generative AI, as courts weigh whether training on copyrighted material qualifies as fair use and how much control creators retain once their work is used to build these systems. The disputes have often centered on written material, which has been at the center of the AI revolution for several years, while AI video generators such as OpenAI’s Sora and Google’s Veo have emerged more recently.

The lawsuit is one of dozens testing the boundaries of AI training practices, alongside high-profile cases from authors, artists and news organizations, including lawsuits against OpenAI and Meta, all circling the same unresolved question: Where does fair use end and infringement begin?

Technologies

The Galaxy Z TriFold Is Back. You Can Buy It From Samsung Soon

The $2,899 phone paused its sales in March after selling through its inventory, but Samsung is bringing it back to its online store.

Samsung’s $2,899 Galaxy Z TriFold is going back on sale on Friday, following a halt to its sales in March after the foldable phone sold through its inventory. Samsung has announced the TriFold’s return with a countdown clock on the phone’s online store page along with a Wednesday newsletter email sent to customers.

The initial pause, which Samsung said at the time was related to the TriFold being a «super-premium device in limited quantities,» happened after just three months of availability. The TriFold first went on sale in South Korea on Dec. 12 and then arrived in Samsung’s US store on Jan. 30. The TriFold sold out in the US within minutes of going on sale — which I know personally after joining my colleagues that morning in an attempt to buy it. Thankfully Senior Reporter Abrar Al-Heeti succeeded, and then reviewed the TriFold.

It’s unclear whether the Galaxy Z TriFold is now permanently returning to Samsung’s online store or if it is again on sale until its stock sells through. Given that the phone is very expensive, and unfolds to reveal a large, 10-inch display, it wouldn’t be surprising if its stock will be in limited quantities. We’ve asked a Samsung representative to clarify and will update if we hear more.

The Galaxy Z TriFold’s return also comes ahead of the summer season when we expect a slew of other foldable phones: Samsung typically refreshes its Galaxy Z Fold and Z Flip line in July or August, and Motorola has announced its first book-style Razr Fold phone will also debut during the season. And Apple’s rumored iPhone Fold (or perhaps iPhone Ultra based on latest rumors) could also be teased later this year.

Technologies

Help Us Crown the Most Loved Headphones and Earbuds of 2026

Got a pair you swear by? Take our People’s Picks survey to help us find a winner.

CNET just launched People’s Picks, a series of surveys where actual humans like you vote for the products and services you use. Starting in April, we want you to weigh in on your favorite headphones and earbuds. We’ll pick a winner based on which ones you love the most.

Why we want to hear from you

Our writers and editors test hundreds of products each year, but your real-world experience with these devices is something we can’t replicate in our labs. You’ve used these headphones at the gym, on your commute to work and on long flights, and that perspective is invaluable. Your voice helps others know about the headphones or earbuds you love, too.

«I review a lot of headphones and earbuds for CNET, and there are plenty of great models from the top brands in this survey that I rate highly. I’m always curious about what models people ultimately choose and why, so I’m excited to get your feedback and learn the results of this survey,» says David Carnoy, CNET’s executive editor and headphones expert.

With our survey, we’ll collect answers from real-world users like you. The headphones and earbuds chosen through our 3-minute survey will be featured in our People’s Picks roundup of the top picks based on your recommendation.

Make your voice heard

Whether you swear by a pair of $25 earbuds or love a pair of high-end headphones, your pick counts. The survey takes just a few minutes to complete, and after we gather enough information, we’ll tally the results and publish the winners.

Not sure what to pick? Check out our Best Headphones to revisit your favorites before voting.